I can’t explain how it feels right now, to be standing so close to Eden…holding her hand against my chest. I can smell her citrusy-smelling shampoo and her green eyes have never looked more beautiful up close. Add in the fact that I know Eden isn’t the self-centered person this entire town believed her to be, and in this moment, I don’t want to let her go.
Eden’s eyes cut away from mine, looking toward the door. I know I should release her, but I don’t. I do, however, resist the urge to bring her in closer. Just a few more seconds of this, then we’ll go fishing and all will be fine and dandy between us.
“What if,” Eden says slowly as her gaze raises back up to mine. Her eyes are speculative…maybe with some mischief brewing in there, “you were a rebound?”
“You came here to have rebound sex with me?” I ask amused with my eyebrow cocked high in disbelief.
Eden shakes her head and smiles at me impishly. “No, that wasn’t on my agenda. But Ashley did bring it up, and seeing as how you’re single now, and I’m single now…”
Her words trail off as I watch bright tinges of red color her cheeks. She drops her eyes, embarrassed, and mumbles, “Forget about it.”
I snake my hand around Eden’s waist and jerk her to me, my hand squeezing hers tighter to my chest. Her body presses into mine and she lets out a gasp of surprise. I look down at her, my eyes trying to discern what she really wants.
Really needs.
“Eden,” I say softly, my entire body tightening from the warmth of her against me. “I know you didn’t come here for that, but you brought it up. So tell me, exactly what you want and why?”
She says nothing for a moment, but I can practically see her trying to work it out in her brain. I suspect her bringing up rebound sex was nothing more than a frivolous statement, brought about by us sharing some humor.
I’m surprised when Eden pushes back from me so suddenly I’m forced to release my hold on her. She walks backward three steps until she comes up against the wall that borders the formal living room off the foyer. She never takes her eyes off me as she places her palms against the wall and leans back against it.
“You and I have had sex before, and it was good, right?” she asks guardedly.
At eighteen and losing my virginity to the only girl I’ve ever loved…yeah, it was pretty fucking great. “It was better than good.”
“But we were young,” she continues. “And only months together like that before I left.”
“Okay,” I say slowly, not sure where she’s going.
“Well, it’s been a long time. You’ve learned stuff and I’ve learned stuff. We’ve…um…broadened our horizons.”
A sudden and not overly unwelcome image of Eden tied up on my bed, blindfolded and gagged while I fuck her from behind, assaults me and I have to blink my eyes to chase it off.
“What’s your point, Eden?” I ask her, because I don’t buy this whole “we’ve both matured and learned stuff, let’s get it on” thing she’s laying on me.
She swallows hard, her cheeks pink up again, and she sort of mumbles, “I’m not sure I really learned all that much.”
“Pardon?”
Her face falls forward, her gaze goes to her feet, and she doesn’t answer.
“Eden…tell me,” I coax her.
When she looks back up, she says, “Well…Brad was cheating on me. That in and of itself implies I wasn’t giving him what he needed in bed. And then he’s been going around saying exactly that, and that’s why he was driven into the arms of another woman.”
My brow furrows in complete disbelief and anger surges through me. “He fucking said that?”
She nods and continues. “And, well, I’ve been stewing about that obviously. Obsessing about it really. I’m thirty-two years old and I have no clue if I’m any good at sex. And then…well, Ashley mentioned rebound sex, and there’s nothing wrong with rebound sex, right? I mean if you have two consenting adults, and we know the boundaries, and we both like sex—and just so you know, Coop, I do like sex a lot—then there’s nothing inherently wrong with it. More than that, though, you and I have history. Intimate history where we once cared for each other very deeply, and I’ll admit it…I still do care for you. That’s really never gone away. So maybe you and I should…well, have sex so I can know if I’m bad or just stupid at picking a fiancé. At least that’s my way of thinking, and well, if you think this is just too weird given our history—”
In one long stride I’m on her.
Over her.
Pressing her tight into the wall with my hands holding her face. My mouth slams down on hers and I’m rewarded with a long moan from Eden.
My head spins as I’m thrown completely off balance by the fact that this is all so familiar, and yet it’s very different at the same time. Eden and I grew up together and she was the woman I told everything to. This woman right now is sophisticated and worldly, not someone I would ever see myself in the same league with.
Yet her mouth is the same.
That exquisite fucking tongue better than I remember.
Those lips that excel not only at kissing but at sucking cock.
God, Eden was so good at getting me off with that mouth.
And just thinking of that causes lust to spear through me so powerfully my dick swells faster than it ever has in my life. Without thinking, I haul Eden up, moving my hands from her face to her ass. Her legs part, wrap around me, and squeeze as I grind my dick right into the soft center of her. Our mouths never stop their devouring path, and our breathing becomes harsh and uncontrolled. Christ I want to pull her shorts down and slam my way home, fuck her right here up against the wall.
But this is Eden, and she’s unlike any other. She’s everything I remembered but exponentially sexier. Merely kissing her brings up a lot of emotions because our history changes things a bit.
With regret, I pull my mouth away from hers but still keep her pinned to the wall. “Eden…”
“Please don’t stop,” she breathes into my mouth as she places hers against mine again.
I indulge in one more deep kiss, and pull away again. “Eden…let’s talk a moment.”
She focuses on me, the passion clearing slightly from her eyes. “I swear my intent isn’t to use you—”
I put a hand over her mouth to shut her up. “I know it’s not. It’s just I want to make sure we know what this is going in. It’s been a long time since we’ve known each other, and, well…rebound sex isn’t love and romance sex. It’s just…sex.”
Eden tilts her head and her eyebrows draw inward. “I feel like you’re preparing me for something here.”
I smile at her softly, dropping my forehead to hers for a moment. When I pull it up, I make sure she sees the truth in my eyes. “Only that it’s just sex. I’m sure really fucking fantastic sex. But let’s not forget. Your life isn’t here in Newberry, and I’m never leaving. And well, frankly…I’m just not a relationship type of guy.”
“You used to be,” she says on a whisper. “Did I change that?”
“I don’t know,” I tell her truthfully. “But there’s been no one like you in my life since then. And I really don’t want it either.”
“Well the last thing I’m looking for is a relationship,” she says seriously. “I think I’m going to stay away from those for a while.”
“So it’s rebound sex then?” I ask to confirm the deal we’re making.